Jayhawk Track and Field Claims Dual Meet Victory Over Missouri, 191-167
Jan. 13, 2012
- Coach Redwine Interview
- Andrea Geubelle Interview
- Demi Payne Interview
Final Results 
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Photo GalleryCOLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Kansas track and field team out-dueled archrival Missouri Friday afternoon, 191-167, in head-to-head action. The Jayhawk women topped the Tigers by a score of 106-75, while the men fell to MU 92-85. The two teams’ combined scores were enough to earn their second-straight dual meet victory.
“Overall, I thought the women’s team did well and the men’s team did okay. There were some areas where I thought we could have done better and we didn’t but the meet was about total team points, and at the end of the night, both teams’ score was really good and we’re definitely excited about that.”
Andrea Geubelle was the top scorer on the night for the Jayhawks. The junior earned victories in both the long jump and triple jump and was the runner-up in the 200 meters. On her very first jump of the day, Geubelle hit a long jump mark of 6.21 meters (20-04.50 ft.), an indoor personal record and the nation’s best this season. Just an hour later in the triple jump, the University Place, Wash., native leaped to a distance of 12.83 meters (42-01.25 ft.), winning the event by nearly five feet.
“In the long jump I finally just relaxed,” Geubelle explained after the meet. “We’ve been training pretty hard the last three weeks. (Horizontal jumps coach Wayne Pate) drilled us and worked a lot on technique and form, and I guess it all came together today.”
Geubelle would end the night having collected 13 points toward her team’s total, as she claimed five points apiece in her long jump and triple jump victories and earned a runner-up finish in the 200-meter dash in a time of 25.37 to garner three points. Her season’s top marks in the long jump and triple jump now rank No. 1 in the NCAA for the 2012 indoor season.
“It was a phenomenal day for (Geubelle) in the long and triple jump and I thought she did a really good job in the 200 (meters) placing second,” said Redwine. “She’s a competitor and she knows what she came here to do. She knew she wanted to come here and win both, and she did. We’re really excited about that and are hoping she will be able to move on to better things.”
The women’s other field events were nothing short of dominating. Of the six field events scored, the Jayhawks would take home event crowns in five of them. Freshman Colleen O’Brien added another high jump victory to the outstanding start of her freshman campaign. The Louisburg, Kan., native took her third win this season by topping Missouri’s Stacy Swineburg in a jump-off and a clearance of 1.70 meters (5-07 ft.). All-American Jessica Maroszek won the shot put on a season-best heave of 14.87 meters (48-09.50 ft.). Demi Payne continued her scorching start to the season with another victory in the pole vault. The sophomore cleared a height of 4.10m (13-05.25 ft.) to seal the victory, which is the third-best height in the country this season. The win was Payne’s third through the first three meets of the 2012 campaign and has the second time in two weeks she has recorded a new personal best.
“I really don’t know what has gotten into me,” Payne said. “I feel like I’m on such a role right now, I’m ready to jump 14 (feet). I’ve got to hit some of the lower bars first before I can get to that that higher one. It felt awesome getting to 13-05 (ft.), though. It’s not what I wanted but it’s definitely up there.”
For the men, the pole vaulters also had another strong outing, claiming the top four spots of the event. Sophomore Alex Bishop jumped his way to his second win of the indoor season with a clearance of 5.20 meters (17-00.75 ft.). The vault was not only a personal best for the Phoenix, Ariz., native, but it ranks seventh in the NCAA this year. Freshman Greg Lupton will share the seven-spot with Bishop, as he also cleared the 5.20 meter bar, however he placed second on tie-breakers.
On the track, the women continued their dominance by claiming victories in the first four events of the day. Rebecca Neville in the 60-meter hurdles, Paris Daniels in the 60-meter dash, Rebeka Stowe in the mile and Diamond Dixon in the 600 yard each took victories from the Hernes Center Fieldhouse track. Dixon, who ran her 600-yard race in 1:22.57, now boasts the fastest time in the NCAA this year and has now claimed individual victories in three different events in 2012 (60 meters, 200 meters, 600 yards).
On the men’s side of the track action, top performances came from junior Kyle Clemons, who took the 600 yard title in 1:12.67, sophomore Sean Smith, who won the 200 meters in 22.08 and freshman Michael Stigler, who won the 60-meter hurdle crown in 8.17.
The day concluded with the men’s and women’s distance medley and 4×400-meter relays. The men would win both events, and would end with a team score of 85. The Missouri men would only defeat the Jayhawks by a mere seven points. The women would take the 4×400-meter crown, more than 17 seconds in front of their Missouri competitors to complete their victory over the Tiger women.
“I said last week, we’re a little bit rusty and when you’re rusty, it not only shows the first week, but it shows the second week as well,” concluded Redwine. “I’m being picky and finding things to complain about but that’s an area we need to get better. Hopefully now, since we have a week off, we’ll have some time to train and start fresh here in a couple weeks.”
UP NEXT
The Jayhawks will return home for the Jayhawk Invitational on Friday, Jan. 27, the first events will kick off at 11 a.m., with the women’s pentathlon field events. The track events are slated to begin at 3 p.m. Log on to kuathletics.com to get live meet updates and results and follow the Jayhawks on twitter at KU_Track.
